No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking

Product Details

• ASIN: B00001QEEG
• Media: Video Game
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #45,169 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

Editorial Review

Pedal power meets polygons in this no-holds-barred cycling experience. Not just another racing game, this title successfully captures the essence and devil-may-care style of competition mountain bike racing.

The menu screens feature clanging guitars and jolting graphics that put you in the mood for adrenaline-rushing action. Once you hit the slope, you'll immediately encounter high-speed rough-and-tumble racing featuring huge jumps and varied terrain. From riverbeds to steep city roads, No Fear Downhill Mountain Bike Racing is filled with challenging race environments. While the graphics aren't as crisp as they could be, the speed is certainly here, and when players switch to a behind-the-handlebars viewpoint they'll know what it's like to tread the thin line between fear and control.

Six riders are available, each flaunting personality and different strengths. Upgrades such as lighter frames or better tires are awarded after beating three separate opponents on each track.

A strength meter decreases after holding the pedal button down for long periods of time. Players will learn to let the bike coast on downhill segments, supplying the riders with bursts of strength for pedaling on flat or uphill segments. This strategy, mixed with the visceral thrill of racing, makes No Fear Downhill Mountain Bike Racing an exhilarating experience. --Jeff Young

Pros:

• Cool riders, each sporting the latest outfits and bikes
• Precise control
• Variety of levels keeps the gameplay fresh

Cons:

• Blurry graphics can make distinguishing terrain changes difficult

GameSpot Review

With the exception of maybe Paperboy and Courier Crisis, the gaming world hasn't seen a lot of bicycling action. Maybe it's because it's hard to imagine bicycling being exciting next to the spaceships, horrible enemies, big guns, and fast cars that other games deliver. No Fear and Codemasters are out to prove that way of thinking wrong by showing just how extreme downhill biking can be. While No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking isn't a revolutionary racing game, it's true to the spirit of downhill biking and is a fun, though short-lived, racing experience. As you would expect from the title, No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking is all about flying down a mostly downhill track on a mountain bike. At the beginning you'll select one of the six initial racers, each with its own individual stats, and then select the track you want to ride on. If you've unlocked the bike upgrades available after performing well in the championship mode, you can customize your bike with different wheels, frames, suspension, and the like. Once the gates open, you'll find that the racing system is true to actual bicycling. You have an energy meter that dictates how long and fast you can pedal, front and rear brakes, and a physics system that realistically distributes your weight on the bike. Leaning back on the bike will tuck your rider, making you more aerodynamic and therefore faster. Leaning forward will cause your biker to lift up, which will slow you down while racing downhill but will help when pedaling up a hill. A careful combination of pedaling, tucking, and braking will let you conquer even the most difficult of tracks, and you'll be surprised at the speeds a bicycle can achieve in this game. The racing itself is divided into five different modes: a one-player championship mode that is a tournament-style race on each one of the tracks in your class, a time-trial mode, the single-race mode, and the interesting multiplayer duel and tournament modes. The duel mode is just like the single-race mode, except that you play against a friend, and the tournament mode is a single-elimination-style tournament for up to four players on the track of your choice. To unlock different classes and bike upgrades you must complete the championship mode. Unfortunately, this mode gets rather tedious, as it forces you to beat four different opponents in four different races on the same track. All that racing without any change in atmosphere gets old rather quickly and makes the championship mode an unnecessarily tiring process. The graphics are something of a contradiction. The player models and biking animations all look pretty good, but the backgrounds simply look horrible. The animations are extremely surprising - when pedaling, your biker will move up and down and weave the bike back and forth in an incredibly realistic manner. The tracks you actually race on all have their own graphical feel to them - from Telegraph Hill's distinctive streets to Sunshine Forest's dense feel. While Downhill Mountain Biking features a nicer-looking replay mode, you can't actually control the camera, so most of the mode forces you to look straight back at your racer, making the mode pretty useless for reliving the action. The sound in this game is almost a joke. There is no music at all - not even on any of the menus or loading screens. In fact, the only time I found music was during the celebration ceremony sequence, where the game plays the same cheesy drum loop over and over again. The sound effects are pretty generic - you'll get a whizzing chain sound when you're coasting at high speeds, an only semirealistic pedaling sound when you're pedaling hard, and a series of panting noises when you're running low on energy. There's also another sound effect, but I couldn't tell whether it was supposed to be your tires skidding or the crowd cheering. While No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking supports analog control, the digital control is almost better. The analog control is extremely loose and sluggish - you'll find yourself unable to properly lean back on the bike without losing control, and getting a sharp turn out of the analog control is asking a lot. But even with the digital control, you'll wish the control was just a little bit tighter. Even at low speeds, turns are difficult, and keeping the bike on a winding track takes a lot of practice. No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking tiptoes the line of being a good racing game. While not completely terrible, the poor control and tedious championship mode are enough to turn away racing fans looking for a new experience. Still, the racing is original enough and at least captures the essence of mountain biking, making this a title worthy of a rental for anyone looking for a serious mountain-biking experience.--Ben Stahl--Copyright © 1998 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hey! This game doesn't stink!, May 3, 2000

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking (Video Game)

A surprisingly good game. My wife even likes it! As a cyclist i was surprised by the high level of realism in the game. A player can actually exert subtle physical control over the bike- such as standing while hammering the pedals, sitting back for improved braking and increased "endurance"- and have the expected result. All in all a good game.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Endlessly Adicted, January 6, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking (Video Game)

I purchased this game.... When it arrived i opened it up right away and started playing. Its awsome everythings very realistic, the wreaks, the sound, the graphics, the gameplay. If you are into extreme sports this is the buy for you, and it has great replay value, so you'll never get tired of it! This is a Great Buy!

5.0 out of 5 stars A game that makes you a better biker... HOW CAN THIS BE?!?, September 18, 2001

By 

Michael Cheney (Seattle, Washington United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: No Fear Downhill Mountain Biking (Video Game)

This game is allot of fun. As a Dual Slalom rider/BMX cruiser rider as well as a PSX enthusiast i can say that this game is really chanllenging. Infact I have never cleared all of the courses to make it to the 3rd and final elite mode for the trails and courses... this is extreemly technical and will make you a better downhill 'thinker' if that makes sense... one downside to this game is that the trick function is next to impossible to master... as far as i know there is no game guide or cheatcodes available for this game making it even more of a challenge...